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I don't make myself work. It's just the thing I want to do. To be completely alone in a room, to know that there'll be no interruptions and I've got eight hours is exactly what I want - yeah, just paradise.
-- William Burroughs
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With all eight kids in our blended family with us on Christmas, my daughter, Bari, took all of them to a portrait studio and had pictures done of everyone. She's so wonderful and thoughtful. What a great gift for Tamara and me. Tonight, we got the finalized pictures. Here are a few:   
Bari
Tyler
Nick
Aaron
Tate
Tess
Austin
Jacob (Cub)I love my crew... |
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All People Should Live Equally |
Our country started out with this great premise: All men are created equal. I heard a long time ago that if you want to change society, you start by changing its words. Consider words like "liberal," "conservative," "welfare," "progressive" - all of these have been hijacked from their original meaning.If you want to alter the meaning of something, you can either add to it, redefine it, or take from it. Add/Change/Delete. If you're successful, it's no longer what it was and you've changed society. In a soundbite culture, context is often lost, but in fact, context is everything. The phrase "I bet," for example, can have different meanings. What gives you the exact and intended meaning of "I bet" is the context. Are the speaker at a blackjack table? Are they agreeing with someone? Did they say it with sarcasm? Big differences, and the only way to know is by the context. Context: after years of having their wealth, possessions, and property plundered and abused ad nauseum by King George III, the fifty-six men who signed the Declaration of Independence set out to declare that the king was born with the same rights as anyone else. There was no great nobility deigned by God that afforded the king his willy nilly dip into the lives of others. George was born no better and with no greater rights than anyone else. Which is why the document reads this way: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Add/Change/Delete... somewhere along the way, "All men are created equal" morphed into "All people are equal," which later morphed into "All people should live equally."Somehow this great and foundational phrase, "All men are created equal" became not a declaration of independence from governmental meddling but a declaration of the obligation of government to ensure that all people live equally. When you are born, you have the freedom to steer your life as you receive it at birth in any direction you choose - as much as anyone else does. But your life should be the sum of your choices, and not a subtraction from the sum of others' choices. I recently had a discussion with someone who felt that illegal immigrants are given a bad lot in life and he felt it was his Christian duty to help these people into the United States. He compared illegal immigrants to the pilgrims on the Mayflower. He asked, by what authority did the European settlers have the right to take the land from native Americans? I pointed out, and he conceded the point, that there was no recognized border the settlers crossed. They saw no legal jeopardy. For example, they did not go to Spain, which was closer, to homestead land owned by someone else. That's not at all the same as illegal immigrants who very definitely know that they cross a sovereign border illegally when coming here. Are illegal immigrants born equal to US citizens? Sure they are. Does this mean that they are entitled to live equally to US citizens? That's up to them to figure out. But it does not mean that we have any societal obligation to them. Unfortunately, we have people like John McCain who want to dispense social security benefits to illegals after they become US citizens. One of the more odious parts of the bill was the insistence that illegals should receive Social Security credit for work they did while in the country illegally. Illegals can’t have a Social Security number, so there are only two ways they can have a job here. They can work under the table, which is tax fraud, or they can steal a citizen’s number, which is identity theft. Paying attention to these details, New Hampshire?And at what point did the senator delete the word "illegal" from the phrase "illegal immigrant" to make it agreeable to himself to do this? |
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One of the books I got for Christmas was Influencer, and although it gets a bit repetitious (get to the point already!), it has enough great substance to make it a worthwhile read. One point in particular has me spinning, and I'll be writing about other points in the next few days. Roughly, from the book: People tend to be better copers than influencers. In fact, we're wonderful at inventing ways to cope. For instance, at work we abandon our quality-control program and install full-time inspectors because nobody will listen. Instead of fixing lousy schools, we complain to our friends and then backfill by tutoring our children because it's the best we can do. And when it comes to diet and exercise, we own two or three different-sized wardrobes because it's impossible to stick to a diet.You can see evidence of coping everywhere. IT department isn't performing well? Outsource it. Recently released convicts leaping too quickly back into crime? Build bigger penitentiaries. It's as if a steady stream of automobiles hurtles toward a cliff to plunge to destruction. Instead of rushing to the top of the cliff to prevent drivers from speeding toward disaster, we park a fleet of ambulances in the valley below to manage the carnage. Is that speaking to you like it speaks to me? It's all about settling instead of fighting to get it right. And what's worse, we become complacent and blind to the coping mechanisms employed and just take them for granted as the way it has to be.No, we need to get to the root cause. The book goes into how masters of influence effectively do this, and it's an interesting read that Tamara and I are sharing together. More about this later... |
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The Advent of Christian Socialism |
I don't know how many Christians have actually read the bible, but I'd say that the percentage that haven't is lower than the percentage that have. For those that have and take it to heart, I have to tell you, they wouldn't be Republicans or conservatives. In fact, the "Christian Right" is an oxymoron. I'll explain why... It's always funny to me how political parties end up with conflicting groups within them. - The nanny-staters who want government to dictate so much of life hate government interference when it comes to the conception of a child.
- The small government folks have within their ranks those that want government to dictate morés and protect the unborn.
I'm certainly not the first to say it, but those who want limited government should, principally, be consistent, shouldn't they?If you read the New Testament, the letters to and accounts of the early post-resurrection church, limited government is not written there. What is written there are edicts to Christians to take care of one another, to share all things with each other as though they were common to everyone, to give out of your abundance to meet the needs of everyone. In other words, it's Christian Socialism. Biblically, there is no "Christian Right." Biblically, there is only the "Christian Left." The bible, unlike conservatism, doesn't celebrate the achievement of the individual. Jesus and his apostles taught grace, the idea that you have no individual achievements for which you can take credit. It's only by the grace of God that you can do anything. There is no merit, if you're a Christian. Which is why football players drop to their knees when they reach the end zone and, post-game, we hear them give the credit to Jesus. Biblically, that's correct. That's what a good Christian would do. Marxists and true Christians, in many ways, march to the same beat, it's just that one has God and Jesus at its center, and the other laughs at God and wants to take him out of every aspect of the government. Which is probably why they're not in the same political party. But if we were to align things correctly, there would be the party of "Leave Me Be" and the party of "It Should Be," the latter wanting to foist its humanism/Christianity on the rest of the world. I have no problem with the Christian church wanting to share things and give out of their abundance. I think that's fine. In fact, I completely agree that Christians should take the example of the early post-resurrection church and do just that. The reason I have no problem with it is that I don't read in the New Testament of Christians wanting to infiltrate government positions to force the rest of society into their view of the world. They shared their goods with each other and had all things held commonly within the church. But the phenomenon we're seeing now is Christian Socialism writ large. I don't remember a Christian candidate before who wanted to issue nanny-statism for the US, but Huckabee is the first, and the true believer crowd is going nuts for it. Yayy Jesus! The party of "It Should Be:" Last night at the caucus, one woman stood up for Huckabee and announced that Huckabee is going to overturn Roe v. Wade (i.e., outlaw abortion). Her political ignorance is huge and alarming. First of all, it's not law, but a judicial decision. And even if it were law, presidents can't just throw out laws at will. Second, if it is overturned, it simply returns the decision of allowing abortion to the states. A second woman later stood up and said that her emotions around Huckabee's candidacy were ruling her decisions, and God was okay with that because God has emotions too. These women are swooning over Huckabee like he's the caretaker/leader they never knew. He's their closest semblance to a savior, and on a national stage. God, they love that man, don't you know. It hit me this morning that Christian women are turned on like never before. By golly, if you don't go to church, I'm tellin' you now, church is a-coming to you in the form of Christian Socialism, and the devil is whoever the Democrats nominate - so girlfriend, you best get you and your man out to the voting booth on time. Jesus found himself a candidate, and his name is Mike. I don't want socialism. In any form. And maybe it's our proximity to Minnesota, but Iowa voted for two socialists last night. I'm mighty concerned about that. |
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I had to run downtown this morning and this being caucus day in Iowa, I have to blog about it. Obama supporters were out in droves this morning, standing on frigid corners, shivering with their signs held passionately up. That's cool. No other candidate has that going for them. I personally know a couple of Fred Thompson supporters, but I don't know if they plan to caucus. I personally know a couple of Ron Paul supporters, and I know for sure that they plan to caucus. My family and I know other Romney supporters and we're going to caucus. Interestingly, my son had to fly back from Atlanta yesterday and happened to sit next to an important poo-bah in the Romney campaign. How cool is that? We might go to the after-caucus party tonight for a bit, if we're not too tired. ETC: Tamara, Nick, and I went to the caucus tonight and more people spoke out for Huckabee than anyone else. I didn't speak - those who go aren't there to be persuaded. Given that Romney fell hard tonight, double-digits behind the Huckster, I find relief in Thompson's third-place finish. Let's see how New Hampshire shakes out. |
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Question: What's the purpose of corporate strategy? Answer: To help a company navigate a competitive field and find its way to a distinctive value proposition for consumers. Questions for every company: - If your company closed down today, who would miss it? Why?
- Which customers would miss it most?
- How fast could your company's market be absorbed by someone else?
Strategy is therefore all about defining, executing, and communicating distinctive value proposition(s) to the consumer.Last questions: Who's in charge of your company's strategy? How are you achieving it? How can you help? |
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The Most Ridiculous Stupid Idiot Loser of 2007 |
I first became aware of Roy Pearson and wrote of him back in May. For the uninitiated, ol' Roy is the DC administrative judge who lost a pair of pants at the cleaners and then sued the cleaners for $54 million because the cleaners didn't give him the "satisfaction" they "guaranteed," even though on the road to try to please this guy the cleaners offered him $12,000. Roy wanted his answer in court. He got it big time: he lost the lawsuit. He also lost his job in the process. Who trusts a judge with poor judgment? Sunlight is the best disinfectant. It's why I like Dr. Phil. It's amazing how many jerks show up on his show and parade their self-righteous behavior before the world and then suffer the aftermath of ridicule and horror when others they know see them on TV and react appropriately. Dr. Phil is an open forum for shaming. That's a good thing, and, in my opinion, badly in need of replication across America. So now for his utter hubris, Roy gets more moments in the spotlight via end-of-the-year lists. Washington Post: Idiot of the Year Southeast Texas Record: The "It Couldn't Happen to a Nicer Guy" Award FoxNews: Biggest Losers of 2007 Canada's Chronicle Herald: The Year in Stupidity The UK's Times Online: Most Ridiculous Legal Action Yep, ol' Roy has earned every minute of his fame. Of course, his appeal of the verdict continues, but I'm sure he'll just see more of what he's gained so far. Sunlight rocks! |
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What do medical terminology, real estate, and chicken teriyaki have to do with each other?  You'll find out soon enough! |
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